Check Out This Pretty Patterned Wallpaper Collab (Win!)

Otto Studio, Canada’s premiere peel-and-stick wallpaper company, has launched its newest artist collection with U.K. illustrator Melissa Donne. Using a joyful pastel colour palette, patterns of fruit and flowers add brightness and cheer to any room. This renter-friendly wallpaper can be removed leaving paint intact, making it a quick and easy way to personalize your space with limited-edition designs from a renowned illustrator. We chatted with Melissa to learn more. —Vita Daily

Hi Melissa! Please tell us a bit about yourself to start!

I’m an illustrator and pattern designer from the South Coast, U.K. I originally trained in fashion design, which cemented my love of colour and surface pattern design. However, after several years spent in academia—both studying and researching and also working in a University art and design library, I rediscovered my love of creativity. This coincided with me having my son, and the desire to explore a more flexible approach and build skills which would enable me to become self-employed and do something I was passionate about. I set up a small business selling my art prints and greetings cards in 2019, and more recently have built a portfolio of work including commissions and licensing with brands such as Casetify, Passion Planner, Orange Circle Studio, and now most recently, Otto Studio.

You have collaborated with Otto Studio on a a bright and colourful new removable wallpaper capsule collection; can you tell us about the range, and the inspiration behind your designs?

The collection with Otto Studio was inspired by two of my favourite things to illustrate—flowers and fruit! I love the richness of colour in these subjects and the opportunity to make some of the details abstract and intricate in terms of texture. For example, adding blue leaves to lemons and oranges, dashes of hot pink to cherries and wavy, elongated and exaggerated petals on flowers. I wanted something bright and playful and ultimately joyful—I feel this is what art is about for me and the concept of adding colour and vibrancy to the home is fundamental to my creative practice.

What made this partnership a perfect fit for you, personally and as an artist?

Partnering with Otto Studio was such a huge opportunity and moment in my career—they have such a fun aesthetic and are so supportive of artists. Their previous collaborations have been so exciting and effective and I was so glad they reached out to work with me. I knew together we could create something really special. It was quite a collaborative process—we discussed ideas together, choosing colour palettes and designs that would fit their style whilst staying true to mine. It was a great fit, and a pleasure to work with them.

We love that this wallpaper is called “renter friendly”; what makes it so?

I love that Otto Studio’s wallpapers are deemed ‘renter-friendly’ as there is something so frustrating about not being able to affix anything permanent to the walls in rental properties, and not being able to add your personality and style when you don’t own your home. Certainly in the U.K., where I’m based, landlords are quite strict about decorating their properties, so having a product that’s easy to remove has so much appeal! It’s exciting to think you can start with a blank canvas, personalize your space, and then remove it at the end of the tenancy without losing any of your deposit!

For those a little shy when it comes to floral, fruity and other patterns, how and why would you encourage them to try these designs in their own space?

I would encourage anyone to go bold! These wallpapers can make a real statement in the home and transform a space. They are intricate enough however that they can be used in smaller areas, than perhaps across an entire room—and still make a real focal point. All the designs also come in two different scales, so if you are a little tentative about going too bold, then a smaller print is a really good place to start!

Trend wise, how do you see pattern’s role evolving when it comes to both art and design/home decor?

There is such a trend toward pattern design at the moment, and the surface pattern community is just so full of talent and amazing ideas. Patterns can literally be used anywhere and transform any product—the opportunities are endless. I am always so inspired visiting my local home decor stores and can spend so much time just looking at the variety of patterns available, and how they can convert a fairly uninteresting and mundane product, into something exciting and eye-catching. So I think the role of pattern design in both art and design and home decor is really to transform the everyday and make it unique and special.

Finally, personal question: how do you bring joy, colour and fun into your own home?

My home was very much a plain, minimalist space when we moved in, and I set to work very early on to give it lots of character and reflect mine and my family’s personalities. Our home is filled with vibrant Risograph prints, which are very heavy on fluorescent pink. As well as pastel home decor items such as sculptural candles, textiles and colourful plastic crates which I am addicted to! I dream of painting a mural in one of the rooms of our house so maybe that will be my next project—something very bright, abstract and joyful, which is exactly the kind of home I am starting to create.

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Win! 1 of 2 Art Prints From Otto Studio!

Congrats Cynthia D. of Fort McMurray, AB, and Cindy P. of Edmonton, AB, who will each receive a $65 art print from Otto Studios! Please note: if you are the winner, you will receive a DM (direct message) in Instagram directly from @vitadaily.ca. Please be wary of fake accounts, which often use similar handles with an extra or missing letter, number or symbol. We will never ask for a payment or for your credit card number, and we will never ask you to click through a link. If you are unsure whether you have been contacted, via Instagram, by us or a fake account, email us before responding.